While football season has just finished up, the Scholars Bowl season has just begun.

Scholars Bowl members competed in their first two meets of the season, the Trego Invitational and the McPherson Invitational this past week.

“I think the season is going well,” said sponsor Cheryl Shepherd-Adams. “We won our first meet and took fifth out of 18 teams at McPherson.”

Shepherd-Adams said there are fifteen students out for Scholars Bowl this year, mostly freshman and sophomores.

“They’re doing a fine job of keeping up with the upperclassmen,” Shepherd-Adams said.

Shepherd-Adams also said she hopes to compete at state competition this season.

“These meets are giving me insights into which team members perform best under pressure,” Shepherd-Adams said.

Freshman Hannah Norris is on the varsity team this year.

“It was great to have the opportunity to help start the season,” Norris said. “I think the team did pretty well, but there’s always room for improvement.”

Norris said the competition could become stressful and intense, much like any other sport.

“I came straight from middle school Scholars Bowl to the varsity team, so there’s a sizable increase in pressure,” Norris said. “Also, being the only freshman girl on the team, I can’t afford any ‘dumb blonde’ moments. It’s almost like you’re being held to a higher standard, and it’s pretty awesome.”

Sophomore junior varsity member Gage Phillips had a similar perspective.

“It felt much more competitive, like there was more at stake than there was in middle school,” Phillips said. “I can’t be sure, but I think we’re going to do swell in our upcoming meets.”

Freshman Clara Lee is also on the junior varsity team.

“It wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be,” Lee said of her first high-school level competition. “I think it went great. It was really fun and I’m proud of our accomplishment.”

Next action for Scholars Bowl is Dec. 9 at Newton.

14nfeyerherm@usd489.com